Sustaining permanent vision impairment and loss, whether due to injury, disease, or genetic condition, can cause significant changes in your day-to-day activities but doesn’t mean that you can’t live a rich, full life and continue doing things that you want and need to do. 

In addition to corrective devices and procedures such as eyeglasses, medicated eye drops, laser therapy, and surgery, there are resources and strategies you can use to help you cope with low vision and even complete vision loss. 

• Learn about Your Condition – Do your own research using reputable sources such as government health agencies and advocacy groups. You can also consult a vision loss specialist from a non-profit organization that provides patient education services for the blind and visually impaired.
• Educate and Utilize Your Intimate Support Network – Tell your family and friends about your condition and whatever new needs you have. They can help make adjustments in your home and office environments (such as moving furniture, removing tripping hazards, installing more lights, etc.) and accommodations in your plans together. 
• Consider Counseling or Therapy – The impairment of any major sense, especially if quick or severe, can make you feel disoriented, vulnerable, isolated, anxious, and even depressed. There are therapists and non-profit organizations that offer one-to-one counseling as well as support groups specifically for people living with vision loss.
• Process Your Grief – Vision loss is a loss like any other. In addition to feeling vulnerable and anxious, you may also find yourself feeling anger, sorrow, and a need to mourn the loss you have sustained. You may even still be in the loss process if you have a progressive disease or condition. Acknowledging and understanding your grief can help you move through it and grow. Speak with your therapist or counselor about these complex but perfectly normal emotions. 
• Make Use of Low-Vision Rehabilitation Resources – Low-vision rehabilitation specialists can assess your abilities, limitations, and needs, recommend helpful products and services to make everyday tasks easier, and teach you adaptive skills for successful independent living. Some non-profit organizations offer free low-vision rehabilitation programs. 

Some online resources include Prevent Blindness, the American Optometric Association, Enhanced Vision, Vision Aware, and the American Council for the Blind.

*Braille Institute. (2019, Nov. 13). Strategies for Coping with Vision Loss [Blog Post]. https://brailleinstitute.org/blog/sight-loss-blog/strategies-for-coping-with-vision-loss